Inmos Factory Building
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Ken Kirkwood (website) Download Original
Environmentally controlled office and microchip production facility designed along a central circulation spine
The brief required highly controlled conditions for the production of electronic microchips, with more conventionally serviced space housing offices, staff canteen and other facilities under the same roof.
The building had to be designed for fast construction (ready for operation within one year of starting on site) This resulted in a high degree of off-site fabrication but gave greater flexibility. The context of the commission was a government-backed drive to expand the British microchip industry: the need was for specialised production space, to be available at the earliest possible opportunity.
The structure is a tubular steel assisted span tension structure, supported by tension tie rods from the spine towers. The structural system provides uninterrupted column free spaces for maximum internal flexibility. The roof is fabricated from 6m span steel decking with thermal insulation and a five-layer roof membrane.
The scheme is divided into ’clean’ areas for microchip production and ‘dirty’ areas for ancillary. A central promenade of more than 100 metres act as the main circulation space within the building. Surmounted by banks of serving machinery above the spine and buttressed by the main roof masts, the building has a strong vertical emphasis.
Data
- Begun: 1982
- Completed: 1982
- Floor area: 8,900m2
- Sectors: Office, Industrial
- Address: Cardiff Road, Newport , NP10 8YJ, United Kingdom
Professional Team 
- Architect: Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners
- Project architects: David Bartlett, John Young, Julia Marks, Kunimi Hayashi, Marco Goldschmied, Michael Elkan, Mike Davies, Peter McMunn, Pierre Botschi, Sally Eaton, Tim Inskip
- Client: INMOS Ltd.
- Quantity surveyor: GA Hanscomb Patnership
- Services engineer: YRM Engineers
- Structural engineer: Anthony Hunt Associates
- Main contractor: Laing Management Contracting Ltd
Suppliers
- Magnagrid ceiling system: Louvers & Ceilings Ltd
- Relocatable partitions: Hauserman Ltd
- Door fittings: Elementa Ltd
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